Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillors M Emmens, A Hutchinson and M Roe.

Councillor L Hartshorne joined the meeting virtually and so was unable to vote or be classed as present.

Members are requested to declare the existence and nature of any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or other interests, not already on their register of interests, in any item on the agenda and withdraw from the meeting at the appropriate time.

Members are requested to declare the existence and nature of any disclosable pecuniary interest and/or other interest, not already on their register of interests, in any item on the agenda and withdraw from the meeting at the appropriate time.

There were no interests declared at this meeting.

To approve as a correct record and the Chair to sign the Minutes of the Growth Scrutiny Committee held on 24 January 2022.

RESOLVED – That the Minutes of the Growth Scrutiny Committee held on 24 January 2022 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Approval of Project Plan and Timetable

Members agreed with the aims and objectives of the review as set out in Appendix 4a. They considered that there was also an overarching aim to improve Council services and growth.

RESOLVED – That Committee approved the project plan and timetable.

Consideration of Briefing Paper and Relevant Documentation

RESOLVED – The briefing paper and relevant documentation were noted.

Consideration of Questions that Members wish to ask Stakeholders

RESOLVED – The questions were approved.

Interviews

·             Mark Ross – D2N2 Business Advisor

·             Business CBE+

·             Business Ian Hands Consultancy

·             Karl Apps – Assistant Director – Economic Development, Regeneration & Housing Delivery

Interview One with Mark Ross D2N2 Advisor, Marie Cooper CBE+ and Ian Hans Consultancy

Members heard from Ian Hands Consultancy that it was often difficult to receive engagement from businesses. Out of 1300 business contacted, only 10% had responded. The majority of good data have been obtained via door knocking exercises taken place in towns, rather than surveys, emails or social media.

Committee were also informed that businesses only tend to approach the Council when they are in need of a specific Council service or function such as transactional arrangements.

Businesses advised Committee that were a number of events happening throughout the region such as Corner Stone meetings held by the County Council or Destination Chesterfield. It was suggested that the District Council could send a representative to these events as a networking exercise.

Businesses also considered that a key or single point of contact would be beneficial as it would allow for closer working relationships and a reduction in time taken to achieve answers or results.

Committee heard that when notifying eligible businesses about grant schemes, it was important not to overload them with information but instead explain the benefits and potential achievements. It was suggested that the Council could conduct phone calls with any eligible business.

Businesses outlined their main concerns post-Covid which were recruitment, import and export concerns, logistics, and energy.

Members discussed the interview at length and considered that a Council Relationship Manager for Businesses or business account managers could be a good way of improving connections with local businesses. The District could also work alongside local businesses with resilience planning and community engagement.

Interview Two with the Assistant Director Economic Development, Regeneration & Housing Delivery

Assistant Director Economic Development, Regeneration & Housing Delivery delivered a presentation to Committee on the Council’s business engagement. This highlighted historical and current engagement as well as some points on what has worked well such as; door knocking, business grants and business networks. Areas that had not worked well included passive forms of communication such as leaflets and emails, promoting what businesses require rather than what the funder has on offer, reaching the decision maker in the business.

Committee also heard future plans such as a business ambassador for the Clay Cross Town Deal, the visitor economy network, localised initiatives and a Clay Cross Town Deal Newsletter.

Members asked the Assistant Director a series of questions and heard that the Council had not been very successful connecting with businesses in the past and that a more targeted approach was needed for the future.

A number of businesses would not engage with the Council due to negative stigma attached to the organisation. To combat this, the Council would be jointly branding webinars and events with the East Midlands Chamber.

The Officer considered that a micro-site and/or separate social media pages solely focussed around businesses could be a good idea as it would help to create a more targeted approach and could be updated regularly so business would have a desire to look  ...  view the full minutes text for item GSC/57/21-22

Triangulation of Evidence

The Committee then considered all of the evidence which it had received during its review of the Council’s engagement with local business.

Committee identified areas of good practice such as the temporary resource in Mark Ross as a business advisor funded by the Covid grant, the effective use of door knocking and face to face engagement, the amount of services offered by the Council.

Members also highlighted a number of areas for improvement. These included; a lack of a dedicated and appropriate channel of communication, a lack of a single point of contact, and a struggle to effectively define and communicate what it offered to businesses.

RESOLVED – That the draft report on the Committee’s review be prepared and submitted to Committee for approval.

To consider the Forward Plan of Executive Decisions.  Please note, the most up-to- date Forward Plan of Executive Decisions can be accessed via the following link:-

https://democracy.ne-derbyshire.gov.uk/mgListPlans.aspx?RPId=1137&RD=0&bcr=1

RESOLVED – That the Forward Plan of executive decisions be noted.

To consider the Work Programme for the Growth Scrutiny Committee 2019/20 and review the proposed workload.

RESOLVED – That the work programme be noted.

To consider any other matter which the Chair of the Committee is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There were no additional urgent items.

The next meeting of the Growth Scrutiny Committee will take place on Monday, 9 May 2022 at 1.00 pm.

The next meeting of the Growth Scrutiny Committee would be held on Monday 9 May at 1pm.

To determine whether the next meeting be held formally (in person) at Mill Lane, or informally via virtual conference call.

The next meeting of the Growth Scrutiny Committee would be held in the Council Chamber, District Council Offices, 2013 Mill Lane, Wingerworth, Chesterfield, S42 6NG.